Could it be Dyslexia?

If a child has three or more of the following warning signs, they may have dyslexia, and could benefit greatly from specialized tutoring:

In Preschool

  • delayed speech
  • mixing up the sounds and syllables in long words
  • chronic ear infections
  • severe reactions to childhood illnesses
  • constant confusion of left versus right
  • late establishing a dominant hand
  • difficulty learning to tie shoes
  • trouble memorizing their address, phone number, or the alphabet
  • can’t create words that rhyme
  • a close relative with dyslexia

In Elementary School

  • dysgraphia (slow, non-automatic handwriting that is difficult to read)
  • letter or number reversals continuing past the end of first grade
  • extreme difficulty learning cursive
  • slow, choppy, inaccurate reading
    • guesses based on shape or context
    • skips or misreads prepositions (at, to, of)
    • ignores suffixes
    • can’t sound out unknown words
  • terrible spelling
  • often can’t remember sight words (they, were, does) or homonyms (their, they’re, and there)
  • difficulty telling time with a clock with hands
  • trouble with math
    • memorizing multiplication tables
    • memorizing a sequence of steps
    • directionality
  • when speaking, difficulty finding the correct word
    • lots of “whatyamacallits” and “thingies”
    • common sayings come out slightly twisted
  • extremely messy bedroom, backpack, and desk
  • dreads going to school
    • complains of stomach aches or headaches
    • may have nightmares about school

In High School

All of the other symptoms plus:

  • limited vocabulary
  • extremely poor written expression (large discrepancy between verbal skills and written compositions)
  • unable to master a foreign language
  • difficulty reading printed music
  • poor grades in many classes
  • may drop out of high school

This list is republished with the permission of Susan Barton, from her book In Screening for Dyslexia, Part 1.